Grandma’s Day Grandma’s Day is celebrated at the beginning
of January in Bulgaria. It pays homage to those who help during birth – during
the 18th, 19th and first part of the 20th century it used to be experienced
older ladies- therefore the Day of Grandma. On that day young women and
toddlers pay respect to these women giving them a few gifts amongst which is a
bag of wool. In my childhood, my grandma
was a grounding force in our sometimes volatile family. She taught me how to
knit and the last thing she knitted before she died was a hat for me. Grandma shaped my core- my passion for
telling stories in textiles. The Story This composition shows knowledge
transferred from one generation to another. It relates to conversations about
age, attitudes and connections between generations. It simultaneously explores aging in the
context of today’s reality- that people’s desire to have a full life keeps them
young regardless of their age. Therefore the look of the grandmother is
informed by Iris Apfel who even in her late 90s continues to be an inspiration
for the fashion world and a true icon of style and gumption. The boy is taught
to knit by her as a twofold story: that crafts are again cool and young and
that we have the option to choose our occupation regardless of age, gender or
race. The Grandma’s hat is inspired by the changing structure of aging
chromosomes. Our body changes are triggered by the shortening of their tails.
The Boys hat is formed by open tubes to symbolise the openness of our minds as
children. The knit art used as a teaching sample has been done by the model
herself.
Veronica & Kevin Veronica came to Ireland 10 years ago
with her husband and son. Eventually, the family grew- her son married his
Latvian wife, they had a daughter that Veronica dotes on and Veronica’s mum has
joined the family. Four generations under one roof. Veronica always dreamed being an actress. She
re-enacts Baba Marta at the community celebrations of Baba Marta. So with her
young spirit and grandma’s reputation she was the obvious choice for this
story. Kevin is a pupil in the Bulgarian School Азбука He is very imaginative
child and as soon as he saw the hat of learning he gave it a name: Shrek’s hat.
Celebrations The Evolution of the Bulgarian Community in
Ireland
The work profiles the evolving make up of a community
through geographical, cultural and personal
change. The artistic conversation
is how festivals and customs reflect and manifest this.
The models in each visual narrative are authentic members of
the Bulgarian community. They are selected on the basis of their personal
connection to a festival, holiday or custom.
For each scene the artwork in felt is purposely created by
Niki to reflect the message about growth, change and strength which is
connecting to others. It is a research into what shifts our personal and
collective boundaries of empathy, acceptance and strength.
This is a collaborative project between Niki Collier- an
award winning visual artist and designer based in Dublin and Ivaylo Petrov a
photographer from the Bulgarian community based in Kildare.
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